Continuous Playback Queue

ABSTRACT

Embodiments are described herein that involve a media playback system playing back a playback queue according to a continuous-playback mode. In one aspect, a playback device is provided that includes a network interface, one or more media processing components, a non-transitory computer-readable medium with program instructions stored thereon. The program instructions are executable by at least one processor to cause the media playback device to: add one or more items to a playback queue of the media playback device, where the one or more items include a continuous-playback item including at least one media item, and based on one or more characteristics of the continuous-playback item, play back the playback queue according to a continuous-playback mode, where playing back the playback queue according to the continuous-playback mode involves: detecting a continuous-playback trigger, and based on the detected continuous-playback trigger, adding at least one additional media item to the continuous-playback item.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, and is acontinuation of, U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No.14/475,093, filed on Sep. 2, 2014, entitled “Continuous Playback Queue,”which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. U.S.non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/475,093 claims priorityto U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/027,214 filed Jul.21, 2014, entitled “Infinite Queues,” and U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/007,906 filed Jun. 4, 2014, entitled “CloudQueue,” both of which are incorporated herein in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tomethods, systems, products, features, services, and other elementsdirected to media playback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Options for accessing and listening to digital audio in an out-loudsetting were limited until in 2003, when SONOS, Inc. filed for one ofits first patent applications, entitled “Method for Synchronizing AudioPlayback between Multiple Networked Devices,” and began offering a mediaplayback system for sale in 2005. The Sonos Wireless HiFi System enablespeople to experience music from many sources via one or more networkedplayback devices. Through a software control application installed on asmartphone, tablet, or computer, one can play what he or she wants inany room that has a networked playback device. Additionally, using thecontroller, for example, different songs can be streamed to each roomwith a playback device, rooms can be grouped together for synchronousplayback, or the same song can be heard in all rooms synchronously.

Given the ever growing interest in digital media, there continues to bea need to develop consumer-accessible technologies to further enhancethe listening experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologymay be better understood with regard to the following description,appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an example media playback system configuration in whichcertain embodiments may be practiced;

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device;

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device;

FIG. 4 shows an example controller interface;

FIG. 5 shows an example flow diagram of an example method;

FIG. 6A is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue;

FIG. 6B is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue after aplayback device adds a continuous-playback item;

FIG. 6C is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue after aplayback device adds at least one additional media item to acontinuous-playback item;

FIG. 6D is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue after theplayback device removes one or more media items from a playback queue;

FIG. 6E is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue after theplayback device adds an item from a local source to acontinuous-playback item;

FIG. 6F is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue after one ormore playback-queue modifications; and

FIG. 7 shows an example controller interface after a control devicereceives mode-indicator data.

FIG. 8 shows an example flow diagram of an example method.

The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating example embodiments,but it is understood that the inventions are not limited to thearrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview

According to examples described herein, a media playback system may playback a playback queue according to a continuous-playback mode. Such amode may cause the media playback system to automatically populate theplayback queue with media items as the playback queue is played.

In general, media playback systems may provide options as to how playback of media occurs. One option may involve playing one media item andthen playing another once a second media item is selected. Anotheroption may involve consecutively playing multiple media items in apredetermined order. The latter option may involve the play back of aplayback queue that includes the multiple media items.

Typically, a playback queue has a finite length. For example, a playbackqueue may include a certain number of media items. Moreover, the lengthof a playback queue is often dependent, at least to some extent, on userinputs. For example, a user may add media items to a playback queueusing one or more inputs; the user may then add or remove media itemsusing additional inputs.

Some media service providers control how a media playback system playsback a playback queue that includes media from the service providers. Inparticular, some media service providers only provide to the mediaplayback system one media item at a time and limit playback featureswhile the media playback system is playing the one media item. Forexample, some of these providers only allow the display of informationabout the currently playing media item, limit the number of media itemsthat may be skipped over a certain period of time, prevent skipping to apreviously played media item, and/or prevent viewing or manipulating theorder of media items that the service provider intends to stream to themedia playback system, among other examples.

In examples described herein, a media playback system may enter into acontinuous-playback mode as the result of the addition of certain itemsto a playback queue. In such a continuous-playback mode, items may beautomatically added to the playback queue such that play back of theplayback queue continues indefinitely.

In particular, a media playback device of a media playback system (orsimply “playback device”) may receive a command to add one or more itemsto a playback queue. Such a command may come from a control device ofthe media playback system and may be in response to the control devicedetecting one or more user inputs. As used herein, an item may take theform of a single media item, a predetermined set of media items arrangedin a predetermined order, or a container item that may be filled withmultiple media items, among other examples.

Based on the command, the media playback device may populate theplayback queue with the one or more items. The one or more items mayinclude a continuous-playback item that may take the form of a containeritem that includes at least one media item. Before the media playbackdevice populates the playback queue with the one or more items, themedia playback device may have previously added items to the playbackqueue. Accordingly, the playback queue may include thecontinuous-playback item as well as other items. However, in someexamples, the playback queue may only include the continuous-playbackitem.

In any event, the media playback device may determine that thecontinuous-playback item has one or more characteristics indicating thatthis item is indeed a continuous-playback item. For example, the one ormore characteristics may indicate that a media source associated withthe continuous-playback item is a continuous-playback source. Based onthese characteristics, the media playback device may play back theplayback queue according to a continuous-playback mode. A playback queuebeing played back in accordance with the continuous-playback mode may bereferred to herein as a “continuous playback queue.”

The media playback device may play back the continuous playback queue ina similar manner as a regular playback queue is played back. However,during play back of the continuous playback queue, the media playbackdevice may detect a continuous-playback trigger indicating that themedia playback device should add additional media items to thecontinuous playback queue. For example, the media playback device maydetermine that the currently playing media item is a predeterminednumber of media items away from the end of the continuous-playback itemor that a predetermined percentage of the playback queue has beenplayed. Other examples exist.

Based on the detected continuous-playback trigger, the media playbackdevice may populate the playback queue with one or more additional mediaitems. In particular, the media playback device may add additional mediaitems to the continuous-playback item. Such additional media items maycome from the continuous-playback source. In this way, thecontinuous-playback mode may help provide continuous and indefinite playback of media without requiring user inputs.

Moreover, while in the continuous-playback mode, the media playbackdevice may perform various additional operations. For instance, in somecases, the media playback device may monitor the size of the continuousplayback queue and remove items when the size exceeds a predeterminedthreshold. For example, the media playback device may remove one or moremedia items when the number of items in the continuous playback queueexceeds a predetermined threshold number of items. Other examples ofsuch additional operations exist.

Further, the continuous playback queue may be manipulated. For example,items may be added to or removed from the continuous playback queue, theorder of items in the continuous playback queue may be rearranged, andmedia items may be skipped or returned to, among other examples. Inparticular, any of these manipulations may occur to thecontinuous-playback item.

After entering into the continuous-playback mode, the media playbacksystem may eventually exit the continuous-playback mode. In examples,the media playback device may play back the playback queue in accordancewith the continuous-playback mode for a predetermined amount of time,for a predetermined number of media items played from thecontinuous-playback item, or until prompted to exit thecontinuous-playback mode, among other examples.

Accordingly, the examples provided herein may help to automatically additems to a playback queue. In this way, a media playback system mayprovide a continuous playback experience with limited user input, whilealso providing the option to manipulate playback in a familiar manner.

As indicated above, examples described herein involve a media playbacksystem playing back a playback queue according to a continuous-playbackmode. In one aspect, a media playback device is provided. The mediaplayback device comprises a network interface configured tocommunicatively couple the media playback device to one or morenetworks, one or more media processing components, a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium, and program instructions stored on thenon-transitory computer-readable medium. The program instructions areexecutable by at least one processor to cause the media playback deviceto: add one or more items to a playback queue of the media playbackdevice, wherein the one or more items comprise a continuous-playbackitem comprising at least one media item, and based on one or morecharacteristics of the continuous-playback item, play back the playbackqueue according to a continuous-playback mode, wherein playing back theplayback queue according to the continuous-playback mode comprises:detecting a continuous-playback trigger, and based on the detectedcontinuous-playback trigger, adding at least one additional media itemto the continuous-playback item.

In another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon that are executable by a playback device ofa media playback system to cause the playback device to: add one or moreitems to a playback queue of the media playback device, wherein the oneor more items comprise a continuous-playback item comprising at leastone media item, and based on one or more characteristics of thecontinuous-playback item, play back the playback queue according to acontinuous-playback mode, wherein playing back the playback queueaccording to the continuous-playback mode comprises: detecting acontinuous-playback trigger, and based on the detectedcontinuous-playback trigger, adding at least one additional media itemto the continuous-playback item.

In yet another aspect, a method is provided. The method involves: (i)adding, by a playback device of a media playback system, one or moreitems to a playback queue of the media playback device, wherein the oneor more items comprise a continuous-playback item comprising at leastone media item, (ii) based on one or more characteristics of thecontinuous-playback item, playing back, by the playback device, theplayback queue according to a continuous-playback mode, (iii) whileplaying back the playback queue according to the continuous-playbackmode, detecting, by the playback device, a continuous-playback trigger,and (iv) based on the detected continuous-playback trigger, adding, bythe playback device, at least one additional media item to thecontinuous-playback item.

It will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that thisdisclosure includes numerous other embodiments.

II. Example Operating Environment

FIG. 1 shows an example configuration of a media playback system 100 inwhich one or more embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced orimplemented. The media playback system 100 as shown is associated withan example home environment having several rooms and spaces, such as forexample, a master bedroom, an office, a dining room, and a living room.As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the media playback system 100includes playback devices 102-124, control devices 126 and 128, and awired or wireless network router 130.

Further discussions relating to the different components of the examplemedia playback system 100 and how the different components may interactto provide a user with a media experience may be found in the followingsections. While discussions herein may generally refer to the examplemedia playback system 100, technologies described herein are not limitedto applications within, among other things, the home environment asshown in FIG. 1. For instance, the technologies described herein may beuseful in environments where multi-zone audio may be desired, such as,for example, a commercial setting like a restaurant, mall or airport, avehicle like a sports utility vehicle (SUV), bus or car, a ship or boat,an airplane, and so on.

a. Example Playback Devices

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device200 that may be configured to be one or more of the playback devices102-124 of the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1. The playback device200 may include a processor 202, software components 204, memory 206,audio processing components 208, audio amplifier(s) 210, speaker(s) 212,and a network interface 214 including wireless interface(s) 216 andwired interface(s) 218. In one case, the playback device 200 may notinclude the speaker(s) 212, but rather a speaker interface forconnecting the playback device 200 to external speakers. In anothercase, the playback device 200 may include neither the speaker(s) 212 northe audio amplifier(s) 210, but rather an audio interface for connectingthe playback device 200 to an external audio amplifier or audio-visualreceiver.

In one example, the processor 202 may be a clock-driven computingcomponent configured to process selection data according to instructionsstored in the memory 206. The memory 206 may be a tangiblecomputer-readable medium configured to store instructions executable bythe processor 202. For instance, the memory 206 may be data storage thatcan be loaded with one or more of the software components 204 executableby the processor 202 to achieve certain functions. In one example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 retrieving audio data froman audio source or another playback device. In another example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 sending audio data toanother device or playback device on a network. In yet another example,the functions may involve pairing of the playback device 200 with one ormore playback devices to create a multi-channel audio environment. Inother examples, the functions may involve the playback device 200performing some or all of the functions discussed with respect to themethods described herein.

Certain functions may involve the playback device 200 synchronizingplayback of audio content with one or more other playback devices.During synchronous playback, a listener will preferably not be able toperceive time-delay differences between playback of the audio content bythe playback device 200 and the one or more other playback devices. U.S.Pat. No. 8,234,395 entitled, “System and method for synchronizingoperations among a plurality of independently clocked digital dataprocessing devices,” which is hereby incorporated by reference, providesin more detail some examples for audio playback synchronization amongplayback devices.

The memory 206 may further be configured to store data associated withthe playback device 200, such as one or more zones and/or zone groupsthe playback device 200 is a part of, audio sources accessible by theplayback device 200, or a playback queue that the playback device 200(or some other playback device) may be associated with. The data may bestored as one or more state variables that are periodically updated andused to describe the state of the playback device 200. The memory 206may also include the data associated with the state of the other devicesof the media system, and shared from time to time among the devices sothat one or more of the devices have the most recent data associatedwith the system. Other embodiments are also possible.

The audio processing components 208 may include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor (DSP), and soon. In one embodiment, one or more of the audio processing components208 may be a subcomponent of the processor 202. In one example, audiocontent may be processed and/or intentionally altered by the audioprocessing components 208 to produce audio signals. The produced audiosignals may then be provided to the audio amplifier(s) 210 foramplification and playback through speaker(s) 212. Particularly, theaudio amplifier(s) 210 may include devices configured to amplify audiosignals to a level for driving one or more of the speakers 212. Thespeaker(s) 212 may include an individual transducer (e.g., a “driver”)or a complete speaker system involving an enclosure with one or moredrivers. A particular driver of the speaker(s) 212 may include, forexample, a subwoofer (e.g., for low frequencies), a mid-range driver(e.g., for middle frequencies), and/or a tweeter (e.g., for highfrequencies). In some cases, each transducer in the one or more speakers212 may be driven by an individual corresponding audio amplifier of theaudio amplifier(s) 210. In addition to producing analog signals forplayback by the playback device 200, the audio processing components 208may be configured to process audio content to be sent to one or moreother playback devices for playback.

Audio content to be processed and/or played back by the playback device200 may be received from an external source, such as via an audioline-in input connection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audio line-inconnection) or the network interface 214.

The network interface 214 may be configured to facilitate a data flowbetween the playback device 200 and one or more other devices on a datanetwork. As such, the playback device 200 may be configured to receiveaudio content over the data network from one or more other playbackdevices in communication with the playback device 200, network deviceswithin a local area network, or audio content sources over a wide areanetwork such as the Internet. In one example, the audio content andother signals transmitted and received by the playback device 200 may betransmitted in the form of digital packet data containing an InternetProtocol (IP)-based source address and IP-based destination addresses.In such a case, the network interface 214 may be configured to parse thedigital packet data such that the data destined for the playback device200 is properly received and processed by the playback device 200.

As shown, the network interface 214 may include wireless interface(s)216 and wired interface(s) 218. The wireless interface(s) 216 mayprovide network interface functions for the playback device 200 towirelessly communicate with other devices (e.g., other playbackdevice(s), speaker(s), receiver(s), network device(s), control device(s)within a data network the playback device 200 is associated with) inaccordance with a communication protocol (e.g., any wireless standardincluding IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4Gmobile communication standard, and so on). The wired interface(s) 218may provide network interface functions for the playback device 200 tocommunicate over a wired connection with other devices in accordancewith a communication protocol (e.g., IEEE 802.3). While the networkinterface 214 shown in FIG. 2 includes both wireless interface(s) 216and wired interface(s) 218, the network interface 214 may in someembodiments include only wireless interface(s) or only wiredinterface(s).

In one example, the playback device 200 and one other playback devicemay be paired to play two separate audio components of audio content.For instance, playback device 200 may be configured to play a leftchannel audio component, while the other playback device may beconfigured to play a right channel audio component, thereby producing orenhancing a stereo effect of the audio content. The paired playbackdevices (also referred to as “bonded playback devices”) may further playaudio content in synchrony with other playback devices.

In another example, the playback device 200 may be sonicallyconsolidated with one or more other playback devices to form a single,consolidated playback device. A consolidated playback device may beconfigured to process and reproduce sound differently than anunconsolidated playback device or playback devices that are paired,because a consolidated playback device may have additional speakerdrivers through which audio content may be rendered. For instance, ifthe playback device 200 is a playback device designed to render lowfrequency range audio content (i.e. a subwoofer), the playback device200 may be consolidated with a playback device designed to render fullfrequency range audio content. In such a case, the full frequency rangeplayback device, when consolidated with the low frequency playbackdevice 200, may be configured to render only the mid and high frequencycomponents of audio content, while the low frequency range playbackdevice 200 renders the low frequency component of the audio content. Theconsolidated playback device may further be paired with a singleplayback device or yet another consolidated playback device.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. presently offers (or has offered)for sale certain playback devices including a “PLAY:1,” “PLAY:3,”“PLAY:5,” “PLAYBAR,” “CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any otherpast, present, and/or future playback devices may additionally oralternatively be used to implement the playback devices of exampleembodiments disclosed herein. Additionally, it is understood that aplayback device is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 2 orto the SONOS product offerings. For example, a playback device mayinclude a wired or wireless headphone. In another example, a playbackdevice may include or interact with a docking station for personalmobile media playback devices. In yet another example, a playback devicemay be integral to another device or component such as a television, alighting fixture, or some other device for indoor or outdoor use.

b. Example Playback Zone Configurations

Referring back to the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, theenvironment may have one or more playback zones, each with one or moreplayback devices. The media playback system 100 may be established withone or more playback zones, after which one or more zones may be added,or removed to arrive at the example configuration shown in FIG. 1. Eachzone may be given a name according to a different room or space such asan office, bathroom, master bedroom, bedroom, kitchen, dining room,living room, and/or balcony. In one case, a single playback zone mayinclude multiple rooms or spaces. In another case, a single room orspace may include multiple playback zones.

As shown in FIG. 1, the balcony, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, office,and bedroom zones each have one playback device, while the living roomand master bedroom zones each have multiple playback devices. In theliving room zone, playback devices 104, 106, 108, and 110 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as one or more bonded playback devices, as one or moreconsolidated playback devices, or any combination thereof. Similarly, inthe case of the master bedroom, playback devices 122 and 124 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as a bonded playback device, or as a consolidated playbackdevice.

In one example, one or more playback zones in the environment of FIG. 1may each be playing different audio content. For instance, the user maybe grilling in the balcony zone and listening to hip hop music beingplayed by the playback device 102 while another user may be preparingfood in the kitchen zone and listening to classical music being playedby the playback device 114. In another example, a playback zone may playthe same audio content in synchrony with another playback zone. Forinstance, the user may be in the office zone where the playback device118 is playing the same rock music that is being playing by playbackdevice 102 in the balcony zone. In such a case, playback devices 102 and118 may be playing the rock music in synchrony such that the user mayseamlessly (or at least substantially seamlessly) enjoy the audiocontent that is being played out-loud while moving between differentplayback zones. Synchronization among playback zones may be achieved ina manner similar to that of synchronization among playback devices, asdescribed in previously referenced U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,395.

As suggested above, the zone configurations of the media playback system100 may be dynamically modified, and in some embodiments, the mediaplayback system 100 supports numerous configurations. For instance, if auser physically moves one or more playback devices to or from a zone,the media playback system 100 may be reconfigured to accommodate thechange(s). For instance, if the user physically moves the playbackdevice 102 from the balcony zone to the office zone, the office zone maynow include both the playback device 118 and the playback device 102.The playback device 102 may be paired or grouped with the office zoneand/or renamed if so desired via a control device such as the controldevices 126 and 128. On the other hand, if the one or more playbackdevices are moved to a particular area in the home environment that isnot already a playback zone, a new playback zone may be created for theparticular area.

Further, different playback zones of the media playback system 100 maybe dynamically combined into zone groups or split up into individualplayback zones. For instance, the dining room zone and the kitchen zone114 may be combined into a zone group for a dinner party such thatplayback devices 112 and 114 may render audio content in synchrony. Onthe other hand, the living room zone may be split into a television zoneincluding playback device 104, and a listening zone including playbackdevices 106, 108, and 110, if the user wishes to listen to music in theliving room space while another user wishes to watch television.

c. Example Control Devices

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device 300that may be configured to be one or both of the control devices 126 and128 of the media playback system 100. As shown, the control device 300may include a processor 302, memory 304, a network interface 306, and auser interface 308. In one example, the control device 300 may be adedicated controller for the media playback system 100. In anotherexample, the control device 300 may be a network device on which mediaplayback system controller application software may be installed, suchas for example, an iPhone™, iPad™ or any other smart phone, tablet ornetwork device (e.g., a networked computer such as a PC or Mac™)

The processor 302 may be configured to perform functions relevant tofacilitating user access, control, and configuration of the mediaplayback system 100. The memory 304 may be configured to storeinstructions executable by the processor 302 to perform those functions.The memory 304 may also be configured to store the media playback systemcontroller application software and other data associated with the mediaplayback system 100 and the user.

In one example, the network interface 306 may be based on an industrystandard (e.g., infrared, radio, wired standards including IEEE 802.3,wireless standards including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communication standard, and so on). Thenetwork interface 306 may provide a means for the control device 300 tocommunicate with other devices in the media playback system 100. In oneexample, data and information (e.g., such as a state variable) may becommunicated between control device 300 and other devices via thenetwork interface 306. For instance, playback zone and zone groupconfigurations in the media playback system 100 may be received by thecontrol device 300 from a playback device or another network device, ortransmitted by the control device 300 to another playback device ornetwork device via the network interface 306. In some cases, the othernetwork device may be another control device.

Playback device control commands such as volume control and audioplayback control may also be communicated from the control device 300 toa playback device via the network interface 306. As suggested above,changes to configurations of the media playback system 100 may also beperformed by a user using the control device 300. The configurationchanges may include adding/removing one or more playback devices to/froma zone, adding/removing one or more zones to/from a zone group, forminga bonded or consolidated player, separating one or more playback devicesfrom a bonded or consolidated player, among others. Accordingly, thecontrol device 300 may sometimes be referred to as a controller, whetherthe control device 300 is a dedicated controller or a network device onwhich media playback system controller application software isinstalled.

The user interface 308 of the control device 300 may be configured tofacilitate user access and control of the media playback system 100, byproviding a controller interface such as the controller interface 400shown in FIG. 4. In addition to the controller interface 400, the userinterface 308 may provide another controller interface, which isdiscussed in greater detail below.

The controller interface 400 includes a playback control region 410, aplayback zone region 420, a playback status region 430, a playback queueregion 440, and an audio content sources region 450. The user interface400 as shown is just one example of a user interface that may beprovided on a network device such as the control device 300 of FIG. 3(and/or the control devices 126 and 128 of FIG. 1) and accessed by usersto control a media playback system such as the media playback system100. Other user interfaces of varying formats, styles, and interactivesequences may alternatively be implemented on one or more networkdevices to provide comparable control access to a media playback system.

The playback control region 410 may include selectable (e.g., by way oftouch or by using a cursor) icons to cause playback devices in aselected playback zone or zone group to play or pause, fast forward,rewind, skip to next, skip to previous, enter/exit shuffle mode,enter/exit repeat mode, enter/exit cross fade mode. The playback controlregion 410 may also include selectable icons to modify equalizationsettings, and playback volume, among other possibilities.

The playback zone region 420 may include representations of playbackzones within the media playback system 100. In some embodiments, thegraphical representations of playback zones may be selectable to bringup additional selectable icons to manage or configure the playback zonesin the media playback system, such as a creation of bonded zones,creation of zone groups, separation of zone groups, and renaming of zonegroups, among other possibilities.

For example, as shown, a “group” icon may be provided within each of thegraphical representations of playback zones. The “group” icon providedwithin a graphical representation of a particular zone may be selectableto bring up options to select one or more other zones in the mediaplayback system to be grouped with the particular zone. Once grouped,playback devices in the zones that have been grouped with the particularzone will be configured to play audio content in synchrony with theplayback device(s) in the particular zone. Analogously, a “group” iconmay be provided within a graphical representation of a zone group. Inthis case, the “group” icon may be selectable to bring up options todeselect one or more zones in the zone group to be removed from the zonegroup. Other interactions and implementations for grouping andungrouping zones via a user interface such as the user interface 400 arealso possible. The representations of playback zones in the playbackzone region 420 may be dynamically updated as playback zone or zonegroup configurations are modified.

The playback status region 430 may include graphical representations ofaudio content that is presently being played, previously played, orscheduled to play next in the selected playback zone or zone group. Theselected playback zone or zone group may be visually distinguished onthe user interface, such as within the playback zone region 420 and/orthe playback status region 430. The graphical representations mayinclude track title, artist name, album name, album year, track length,and other relevant information that may be useful for the user to knowwhen controlling the media playback system via the user interface 400.

The playback queue region 440 may include graphical representations ofaudio content in a playback queue associated with the selected playbackzone or zone group. In some embodiments, each playback zone or zonegroup may be associated with a playback queue containing informationcorresponding to zero or more audio items for playback by the playbackzone or zone group. For instance, each audio item in the playback queuemay comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI), a uniform resourcelocator (URL) or some other identifier that may be used by a playbackdevice in the playback zone or zone group to find and/or retrieve theaudio item from a local audio content source or a networked audiocontent source, possibly for playback by the playback device.

In one example, a playlist may be added to a playback queue, in whichcase information corresponding to each audio item in the playlist may beadded to the playback queue. In another example, audio items in aplayback queue may be saved as a playlist. In a further example, aplayback queue may be empty, or populated but “not in use” when theplayback zone or zone group is playing continuously streaming audiocontent, such as Internet radio that may continue to play untilotherwise stopped, rather than discrete audio items that have playbackdurations. In an alternative embodiment, a playback queue can includeInternet radio and/or other streaming audio content items and be “inuse” when the playback zone or zone group is playing those items. Otherexamples are also possible.

When playback zones or zone groups are “grouped” or “ungrouped,”playback queues associated with the affected playback zones or zonegroups may be cleared or re-associated. For example, if a first playbackzone including a first playback queue is grouped with a second playbackzone including a second playback queue, the established zone group mayhave an associated playback queue that is initially empty, that containsaudio items from the first playback queue (such as if the secondplayback zone was added to the first playback zone), that contains audioitems from the second playback queue (such as if the first playback zonewas added to the second playback zone), or a combination of audio itemsfrom both the first and second playback queues. Subsequently, if theestablished zone group is ungrouped, the resulting first playback zonemay be re-associated with the previous first playback queue, or beassociated with a new playback queue that is empty or contains audioitems from the playback queue associated with the established zone groupbefore the established zone group was ungrouped. Similarly, theresulting second playback zone may be re-associated with the previoussecond playback queue, or be associated with a new playback queue thatis empty, or contains audio items from the playback queue associatedwith the established zone group before the established zone group wasungrouped. Other examples are also possible.

Referring back to the user interface 400 of FIG. 4, the graphicalrepresentations of audio content in the playback queue region 440 mayinclude track titles, artist names, track lengths, and other relevantinformation associated with the audio content in the playback queue. Inone example, graphical representations of audio content may beselectable to bring up additional selectable icons to manage and/ormanipulate the playback queue and/or audio content represented in theplayback queue. For instance, a represented audio content may be removedfrom the playback queue, moved to a different position within theplayback queue, or selected to be played immediately, or after anycurrently playing audio content, among other possibilities. A playbackqueue associated with a playback zone or zone group may be stored in amemory on one or more playback devices in the playback zone or zonegroup, on a playback device that is not in the playback zone or zonegroup, and/or some other designated device.

The audio content sources region 450 may include graphicalrepresentations of selectable audio content sources from which audiocontent may be retrieved and played by the selected playback zone orzone group. Discussions pertaining to audio content sources may be foundin the following section.

d. Example Audio Content Sources

As indicated previously, one or more playback devices in a zone or zonegroup may be configured to retrieve for playback audio content (e.g.according to a corresponding URI or URL for the audio content) from avariety of available audio content sources. In one example, audiocontent may be retrieved by a playback device directly from acorresponding audio content source (e.g., a line-in connection). Inanother example, audio content may be provided to a playback device overa network via one or more other playback devices or network devices.

Example audio content sources may include a memory of one or moreplayback devices in a media playback system such as the media playbacksystem 100 of FIG. 1, local music libraries on one or more networkdevices (such as a control device, a network-enabled personal computer,or a networked-attached storage (NAS), for example), streaming audioservices providing audio content via the Internet (e.g., the cloud), oraudio sources connected to the media playback system via a line-in inputconnection on a playback device or network devise, among otherpossibilities.

In some embodiments, audio content sources may be regularly added orremoved from a media playback system such as the media playback system100 of FIG. 1. In one example, an indexing of audio items may beperformed whenever one or more audio content sources are added, removedor updated. Indexing of audio items may involve scanning foridentifiable audio items in all folders/directory shared over a networkaccessible by playback devices in the media playback system, andgenerating or updating an audio content database containing metadata(e.g., title, artist, album, track length, among others) and otherassociated information, such as a URI or URL for each identifiable audioitem found. Other examples for managing and maintaining audio contentsources may also be possible.

The above discussions relating to playback devices, controller devices,playback zone configurations, and media content sources provide onlysome examples of operating environments within which functions andmethods described below may be implemented. Other operating environmentsand configurations of media playback systems, playback devices, andnetwork devices not explicitly described herein may also be applicableand suitable for implementation of the functions and methods.

III. Continuous-Playback Mode

As discussed above, examples described herein may provide a mediaplayback system configured to play back a playback queue according to acontinuous-playback mode.

Method 500 shown in FIG. 5 presents an embodiment of a method that maybe implemented within an operating environment involving, for example,the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1. In particular, the method 500may be performed in whole or in part by a playback device of the mediaplayback system 100, such as the playback device 200. The method 500 mayinclude one or more operations or actions as illustrated by one or moreof blocks 502-508. Although the blocks are illustrated in sequentialorder, these blocks may also be performed in parallel, and/or in adifferent order than those described herein. Also, the various blocksmay be combined into fewer blocks, divided into additional blocks,and/or removed based upon the desired implementation.

In addition, for the method 500 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, the flowchart shows functionality and operation of onepossible implementation of present embodiments. In this regard, eachblock may represent a module, a segment, or a portion of program code,which includes one or more instructions executable by a processor forimplementing specific logical functions or steps in the process. Theprogram code may be stored on any type of computer-readable medium, forexample, such as a storage device including a disk or hard drive. Thecomputer-readable medium may include non-transitory computer-readablemedium, for example, such as computer-readable media that stores datafor short periods of time like register memory, processor cache andRandom Access Memory (RAM). The computer-readable medium may alsoinclude non-transitory media, such as secondary or persistent long termstorage, like read only memory (ROM), optical or magnetic disks,compact-disc read only memory (CD-ROM), for example. Thecomputer-readable media may also be any other volatile or non-volatilestorage systems. The computer-readable medium may be considered acomputer-readable storage medium, for example, or a tangible storagedevice. In addition, for the method 500 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, each block in FIG. 5 may represent circuitry that iswired to perform the specific logical functions in the process.

For clarity, the method 500 is described herein with reference to FIGS.6A-6F and FIG. 7. It should be understood, however, that this is forpurposes of example and explanation only and that the operations of themethod 500 are not limited to these figures.

As shown in FIG. 500, the method 500 begins at block 502 with theplayback device 200 adding one or more items to a playback queue of themedia playback device, where the one or more items include at least acontinuous-playback item. In practice, the playback device 200 mayperform this operation in response to receiving a command to add the oneor more items to the playback queue. For instance, a control device(e.g., the control device 300) may detect one or more user inputsindicating that the user would like to add the continuous-playback itemto the playback queue (e.g., a user may select an Internet radio sourcefrom the audio content sources region 450). After detecting these one ormore user inputs, the control device 300 may transmit to the playbackdevice 200 the command to add the continuous-playback item to theplayback queue. The playback device 200 may then add thecontinuous-playback item to the playback queue.

As discussed above, an item may take various forms. For example, an itemmay be a single media item, a predetermined set of media items arrangedin a predetermined order, a streaming media item (e.g., Internet radio),or a container item that is fillable with other items, among otherexamples.

In examples, the continuous-playback item may take the form of acontainer item that other items may be added to or removed from. In somecases, the continuous-playback item may include one or more items whenthe continuous-playback item is added to the playback queue. In othercases, the continuous-playback item may be empty (or perhaps onlyincludes particular items) when added to the playback queue and one ormore items may be subsequently added to the continuous-playback item,perhaps based on the playback device 200 entering a continuous-playbackmode (discussed in detail below).

Moreover, a container item may be associated with a particular mediasource, e.g., the particular media source provides the media itemscontained in the container item. For instance, the continuous-playbackitem may be associated with a given streaming media provider. In somecases, the continuous-playback item may include a predetermined numberof media items, which may be determined by the media source associatedwith the container item.

In some implementations, adding the one or more items to the playbackqueue of the playback device may involve the playback device 200generating a container item. In particular, the playback device 200 mayreceive a command to add particular media content to the playback queue,such as certain streaming media content. The playback device 200 maythen generate a container corresponding to the particular media contentand the container may be fillable with media from the source of theparticular media content. In some cases, the container may be filledwith a predetermined number of media items that the playback device 200receives from the source. The playback device 200 may then add thisgenerated container to the playback queue as the continuous-playbackitem.

In practice, how the media playback system is programmed (the playbackdevice 200 in particular) may dictate which media content causes theplayback device 200 to generate the continuous-playback item. Examplesof such media content may include certain pre-programmed Internet radioand/or certain other streaming media content. In some examples, a firstInternet radio source may cause the continuous-playback item to begenerated, while a second Internet radio source may not. Such adistinction may depend on whether a given media source is capable ofoperating as a continuous-playback source, among other considerations.Other examples are also possible.

Moreover, according to examples, the playback device 200 adding the oneor more items to the playback queue may involve the playback device 200adding respective identifiers of the one or more items to the playbackqueue. For example, each item in the playback queue may correspond to aURI, URL, or some other identifier that may be used by the playbackdevice 200 to locate and/or retrieve the item from a local contentsource or a networked content source for potential play back by theplayback device 200. Similarly, for the continuous-playback item (andother container items), the playback device 200 may add respectiveidentifiers for each item included in the continuous-playback item.

In some examples, the one or more items may be the first items added tothe playback queue. Accordingly, adding the one or more items to theplayback queue may involve the playback device 200 generating a newplayback queue. This in turn may involve the playback device 200allocating storage space in the memory 206 for the new playback queue.In other examples, the playback queue may already exist (e.g., alreadyinclude one or more items) and the playback device 200 may add the oneor more items to the existing playback queue.

To illustrate, FIG. 6A is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue600. The playback queue 600 may correspond to an existing playback queuethat includes multiple items 602. Here, the items 602 may take the formof single media items with titles “Track A-E”. Moreover, each of theitems 602 may be placed in particular positions within the playbackqueue 600 as represented by position numbers 1-5.

FIG. 6B is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue 610 after theplayback device 200 adds a continuous-playback item 612 to the playbackqueue 600 of FIG. 6A. As shown, the continuous-playback item 612 wasadded to the playback queue 600, and the continuous-playback item 612 isshown including a number of media items with titles “Track F-J”. In thisexample, the continuous-playback item 612 was added after positionnumber 3. Consequently, Tracks D and E are now at position numbers 9 and10, respectively. It should be understood that the one or more itemsadded to the playback queue may be added at any position within theplayback queue.

After or perhaps before the playback device 200 adds thecontinuous-playback item to the playback queue, the playback device 200may determine one or more characteristics of the continuous-playbackitem indicating that the item triggers or is otherwise associated with acontinuous-playback mode. In practice, metadata or an indicator mayindicate the one or more characteristics; either of which may beprovided by the media source associated with the continuous-playbackitem. In some examples, the media items of the continuous-playback itemmay include metadata indicating the one or more characteristics. Inother examples, the command to add the one or more items to the playbackqueue may include an indicator, such as a string of characters or thelike, indicating the one or more characteristics.

In some examples, the one or more characteristics may indicate the mediasource associated with the continuous-playback item. In such examples,the playback device 200 may determine that the source associated withthe continuous-playback item is a continuous-playback source. Inparticular, this operation may involve the playback device 200determining whether the media source is included in acontinuous-playback sources list that may be stored on the playbackdevice 200 or externally. Alternatively, this operation may involvedetermining whether an identifier of the source matches a universalcontinuous-playback source identifier that may be stored by the playbackdevice 200.

In yet other examples, the one or more characteristics may themselvestrigger the continuous-playback mode. For example, the one or morecharacteristics may include instructions for the playback device to playback the continuous-playback item according to the continuous-playbackmode. In some cases, such instructions may be provided to the playbackdevice 200 by the control device 300 after the control device detectsone or more inputs indicating that the continuous-playback item shouldbe played according to the continuous-playback mode. For instance, auser may indicate at the control device 300 (e.g., via one or moreinputs) that certain items should be added to the playback queue andthat those items should be played according to the continuous-playbackmode. Other examples are also possible.

Returning back to FIG. 5, at block 504, the method 500 involves, basedon the one or more characteristics of the continuous-playback item, theplayback device 200 playing back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode. It should be understood that one or moreadditional playback devices may also play back the playback queueaccording to the continuous-playback mode. Such additional playbackdevices may be part of a playback zone that the playback device 200belongs to.

In examples, some “traditional” playback-queue operations, such asshuffle or repeat, may be disabled or otherwise unavailable whileplaying back the continuous playback queue. In yet other examples, suchoperations may be only temporarily disabled, if at all. In particular,in the event that the playback device 200 is playing back the playbackqueue in a “shuffle” mode prior to entering the continuous-playbackmode, the playback device 200 may temporarily disable the shuffle modeuntil, for example, play back of the continuous-playback item begins.After that point in time, the shuffle mode may then be reactivated.Other examples are possible.

At block 506, the method 500 involves, while playing back the playbackqueue according to the continuous-playback mode, detecting acontinuous-playback trigger. In general, a continuous-playback triggermay be any indication that notifies the playback device 200 to replenishthe playback queue with additional items. In particular, thecontinuous-playback trigger may notify the playback device 200 to additems to the continuous-playback item.

In practice, the playback device 200 may detect the continuous-playbacktrigger before, while, or after a given item is played back. Moreover,the playback device 200 may detect the continuous-playback trigger whilean item from the continuous-playback item is played back or while anitem from outside of the continuous-playback item is played back.

In examples, detecting the continuous-playback trigger may involve theplayback device 200 determining that play back of the playback queue iswithin a predetermined threshold number of items from an end of thecontinuous-playback item. In particular, while operating in thecontinuous-playback mode, the playback device 200 may monitor theremaining portion of the playback queue corresponding to items yet to beplayed. As more items are played from the playback queue, the remainingportion decreases, and at some point, the continuous-playback trigger istriggered.

To illustrate, returning back to FIG. 6B, the playback device 200 mayplay back the playback queue 610 according to the continuous-playbackmode. Play back may begin with the media item in position number one(e.g., Track A) and may progress to the media item in position numbertwo (e.g., Track B) and so forth. As play back progresses, the playbackdevice 200 may monitor the number of items that remain before the end ofthe continuous-playback item 612 is reached (e.g., Track J). After sometime, play back may reach the song in queue position number six (e.g.track H). At this point, the playback device 200 may determine that playback is within a threshold number of items from the end of thecontinuous-playback item 612. This determination may occur as Track Hbegins to play, while it plays, or after it ends and before Track Ibegins playing. In other examples, instead of determining a thresholdnumber of items remaining, detecting the continuous-playback trigger mayinvolve the playback device 200 detecting the start of play back of thelast item in the continuous-playback item 612 (e.g., Track J).

While the above discusses the continuous-playback trigger with respectto a number of items remaining before the end of the continuous-playbackitem, this might not always be the case. In some examples, detecting thecontinuous-playback trigger may involve the playback device 200determining that a remaining playback duration is within a predeterminedthreshold amount of time. In particular, while operating in thecontinuous-playback mode, the playback device 200 may monitor the amountof playback time that remains in the playback queue. For example, theplayback device 200 may maintain a running calculation of the total timethat remains of the items yet to be played. When the total time is lessthan a predetermined threshold amount of time, the continuous-playbacktrigger may be detected.

Although the above examples discuss example continuous-playback triggerswith respect to a number of items or an amount of time remaining in theplayback queue, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate thatsuch examples are modifiable to a number of items or a predeterminedpercentage of the playback queue that has already been played.

In other examples, detecting the continuous-playback trigger may involvethe playback device 200 determining that a predetermined time intervalhas elapsed. For example, the playback device 200 may be configured tomonitor an internal clock of the playback device 200 and interpret thepassage of every 20, 30, 60 minutes, etc. as a continuous-playbacktrigger. In yet other examples, detecting the continuous-playbacktrigger may involve the playback device 200 determining that apredetermined number of items from the playback queue (or specifically,from the continuous-playback item) have been skipped.

Other examples of detecting the continuous-playback trigger arepossible. It should be understood that detecting the continuous-playbacktrigger may involve any combination of the aforementioned examples.

Returning back to FIG. 5, at block 508, the method 500 involves, basedon the detected continuous-playback trigger, the playback device 200adding at least one additional media item to the continuous-playbackitem. In practice, this operation may involve the playback device 200transmitting to the media source associated with the continuous-playbackitem a request to obtain additional media items (e.g., via an API callbetween the playback device 200 and the media source). The media sourcemay then provide additional media items and/or identifiers of theadditional media items to the playback device 200. The playback device200 may then populate the continuous-playback item with the additionalmedia items.

In some examples, the request to obtain the additional media items mayinclude information (e.g., in the form of metadata, item identifiers, ora playback queue identifier, among other examples) regarding the itemsalready in the playback queue. Based on such information, the mediasource may be configured to intelligently identify items that are notyet in the playback queue. In this way, the playback device 200 mayfacilitate the media source providing new items for play back that aredifferent from those items already in the playback queue.

In some examples, the playback device 200 may add a predetermined numberof media items to the continuous-playback item. The predetermined numberof media items may be the same as or different from the predeterminednumber of media items described above with reference to block 502. Asdiscussed above, the predetermined number of media items may depend onthe media source associated with the continuous-playback item.

To illustrate, FIG. 6C is a conceptual illustration of a playback queue614 after the playback device 200 adds at least one additional mediaitem to the continuous-playback item. The playback queue 614 may be theplayback queue 610 of FIG. 6B after the playback device 200 detects thecontinuous-playback trigger. As shown, media items 616 (e.g., “TracksK-O”) were added to the continuous-playback item 612 after positionnumber 8 of playback queue 610. Consequently, Tracks D and E are now atposition numbers 14 and 15, respectively. Notably, the number of mediaitems added in FIG. 6C is the same as the number of media items added inFIG. 6B. However, this should not be construed as limiting.

In some implementations, instead of adding the at least one additionalmedia item to the existing end of the continuous-playback item, theplayback device 200 may add the at least one additional media item tothe end of the playback queue. For example, referring back to FIGS. 6Band 6C, the additional media items 616 may be added after Track D and E(e.g., after position number 10 of the playback queue 610) and therebyallow play back to cycle between the continuous-playback item 612 andthe other items 602 in the playback queue. In this way, a user maycontinuously experience play back of media and may also listen to theitems that he or she added to the playback queue.

Additional operations may be carried out with or in addition to themethod 500. One additional operation may involve, while playing back theplayback queue according to the continuous-playback mode, the playbackdevice 200 removing items from the playback queue. In examples, thisoperation may involve the playback device 200 monitoring a queue sizethat corresponds to a size of the continuous playback queue. The queuesize may be a number of items currently in the playback queue or astorage measurement indicating an amount of storage space occupied bythe playback queue.

At some point in time, the playback device 200 may determine that thequeue size exceeds a predetermined threshold size. In practice, theplayback device 200 may make such a determination after the playbackdevice 200 adds items to the playback queue (e.g., after block 508). Forexample, returning to FIG. 6C, the playback device 200 may determinethat the queue size of the playback queue 614 exceeds a predeterminedthreshold number of items (e.g., 10 media items).

Based on determining that the queue size exceeds the predeterminedthreshold size, the playback device 200 may remove one or more itemsfrom the playback queue. To illustrate, FIG. 6D is a conceptualillustration of a playback queue 618 after the playback device 200removes one or more media items from the playback queue 614. As shown,the remaining media items are now at different position numbers than inthe playback queue 614.

In examples, before the playback device 200 removes the one or moreitems from the playback queue, the playback device 200 may determinewhich items to remove. In some implementations, the removed items maycorrespond to the items that have been in playback queue the longest orthe items that were played back the longest time ago. Accordingly, eachitem may include a timestamp that indicates a time that the given itemwas added to the playback queue and/or a time that the given item wasplayed back. A timestamp may identify a clock time or atime-since-power-on, among other examples. For items that have yet to beplayed back, a playback timestamp may be set to null or the like.

In some implementations, determining which items to remove from theplayback queue may involve the playback device 200 analyzing userplayback preferences. In one example, items from the playback queue thatwere skipped by the user may be removed first. In another example, itemsfrom the playback queue that were starred, flagged, or otherwiseidentified as items that the user enjoyed experiencing may not beremoved from the playback queue regardless of their respective timestampvalues.

In some implementations, the above operations may be particular to thecontinuous-playback item. For example, instead of the playback device200 monitoring a queue size, the playback device 200 may monitor a sizeof the continuous-playback item. And instead of the playback device 200removing items from the playback queue, the playback device 200 mayremove one or more items from the continuous-playback item. Forinstance, returning to FIGS. 6C and 6D, instead of removing Tracks A, B,C, F, and G from the playback queue 614, the playback device 200 mayremove Tracks F, G, H, I, and J from the continuous-playback item 612(assuming of course that play back is at or after Track K).

It should be understood that the above operations discussed withreference to blocks 506 and 508 may continue to occur while the playbackdevice 200 operates in the continuous-playback mode. In this way, themethods, systems, and devices described herein may help provide a user acontinuous media playback experience with little to no user interactionwith the media playback system.

In some examples, playing back the continuous playback queue may besimilar in some respects to playing back a regular playback queue.Accordingly, operations that may be carried out with or in addition tothe method 500 may involve some operations that may be carried out whileplaying back a normal playback queue. In particular, these operationsmay be performed to the continuous-playback item.

For instance, items may be added to a continuous playback queue and maybe even added to continuous-playback item. For example, an album ofmedia items, media items identified by a playlist, a streaming mediasource, etc. may be added to the playback queue. Moreover, the addeditems may be from the same source or a different source than that whichis associated with the continuous-playback item. To illustrate, FIG. 6Eis a conceptual illustration of a playback queue 620 after the playbackdevice 200 adds an item from a local source to the continuous-playbackitem 612. The playback queue 620 may be the playback queue 614 of FIG.6C sometime after the playback device 200 begins playing Track I. Asshown, a single media item, “Track P”, was added to thecontinuous-playback item 612 (and thus the playback queue 620). Itshould be understood that “Track P” could have been a playlist, analbum, etc.

Moreover, the items of the continuous playback queue may be manipulatedas though the continuous playback queue were a normal playback queue. Inparticular, example traditional operations that may be performed mayinclude: re-ordering the playback order of the items in the playbackqueue, skipping items, returning to a previously played item, jumping toa particular position number, and seeking forward or backward within agiven item. To illustrate, FIG. 6F is a conceptual illustration of aplayback queue 622 after one or more playback-queue modifications. Theplayback queue 622 may be the playback queue 614 of FIG. 6C after theplayback device 200 performs multiple modification operations. Inparticular, as shown, Tracks J, M, N, and O have been re-ordered withinthe continuous-playback item 612.

Further, the continuous playback queue may also be saved by the playbackdevice 200 as a playlist for future playback. In particular, theplayback device 200 may save the continuous playback queue at any pointin time and/or may save multiple version of the continuous playbackqueue as it grows. For example, after a first addition of items to theplayback queue, a first playlist may be saved, and after a tenthaddition of items to the playback queue, a second playlist may be saved.It should be understood that these are but a few possible traditionaloperations that may be carried out with a continuous playback queue andshould not be construed as limiting. Other operations are possible.

In example implementations, any of these operations may be performed bythe playback device 200 in response to receiving one or moreplayback-queue-modification commands. In some cases, a user may use acontroller interface on a control device to manipulate acontinuous-playback queue. The control device may then sendplayback-queue-modification commands to the playback device 200. Theplayback device 200 may then modify the playback queue based on thereceived commands.

Another operation that may be carried out with or in addition to themethod 500 may involve the playback device 200 transmittingplayback-queue-state data indicating an addition of more items or amodification to the playback queue. Such data may be transmitted afteritems are added to the playback queue or after the playback device 200modifies the playback queue. Playback-queue-state data may betransmitted to a control device (e.g., the control device 300) or themedia source associated with the continuous-playback item, among otherpossibilities. In some cases, the control device (or perhaps anotherdevice) may use such data to cause a graphical display to display thecurrent state of the playback queue.

In examples, after adding a media item to the continuous-playback item(e.g., after block 508 or in response to a playback-queue-modificationcommand), the playback device 200 may transmit playback-queue-state dataindicating the addition of the media item. The playback-queue-state datamay include an indication of where in the queue the media item wasadded. For example, returning back to FIGS. 6C and 6E, the playbackdevice 200 may transmit playback-queue-state data after adding Track P.Such data may indicate that Track P was added to the playback queue 614at position number 10. In some implementations, the playback-queue-statedata may also indicate that Track P was added between Tracks K and L(and perhaps their previous position numbers) and that the positionnumbers for all items after Track K have been incremented by one.Moreover, the playback-queue-state data may include a media itemidentifier corresponding to Track P.

In examples where the added media item is from a source different fromthe source associated with the continuous-media item, theplayback-queue-state data may also include metadata of the added mediaitem. The metadata of the added media item may indicate a media itemidentifier that may be used to facilitate cross-service linking, atitle, an artist name, an album name, and/or a media item length (e.g.,duration of time), among other examples.

In some examples, after modifying the playback queue, the playbackdevice 200 may transmit playback-queue-state data indicating amodification location. The modification location may indicate one ormore playback-queue positions corresponding to the modification to theplayback queue. For example, the playback-queue-state data may includepast and/or present position numbers for items affected by themodification. Returning to FIG. 6F, after the playback device 200modifies the playback queue 622, the playback device 220 may transmitplayback-queue-state data indicating that Track O was at position number13 but is now at position number 8, that Track N was at position number12 and is now at position number 11, and so forth.

In addition to transmitting playback-queue-state data, the playbackdevice 200 may also transmit mode-indicator data. In examples, such datamay be transmitted to a control device (e.g., the control device 300).This operation may occur after the playback device 200 enters into thecontinuous-playback mode (e.g., after block 504). The mode-indicatordata may facilitate causing a graphical display (e.g., of the controldevice 300) to display an indication that the playback device 200 isoperating in the continuous-playback mode.

To illustrate, FIG. 7 shows an example controller interface 700 afterthe control device 300 receives mode-indicator data. In some respects,the controller interface 700 is similar to the controller interface 400.However, control icons 702 corresponding to a repeat control and ashuffle control are shown as disabled (e.g., as indicated by the dashedlines). Such an indication may represent an implicit indication that theplayback device 200 is operating in the continuous-playback mode.

Moreover, the controller interface 700 also depicts an examplerepresentation of a continuous playback queue in playback queue region740. The illustrated playback queue may correspond to the playback queue614 of FIG. 6C. As shown, the playback queue region 740 includes alisting of the items in the playback queue, as well as an indicator ofthe item currently playing (here, Track H) and an indication ofpreviously played items (here, italicized track titles). Other examplerepresentations of a continuous playback queue are also possible.

Another example of an implicit indication may involve displaying aportion of the items in the continuous playback queue with a colorgradient indicating additional items will be added. For example, a colorgradient may be applied to one or more of the last items displayed inthe playback queue region 740. In other examples, the controllerinterface 700 may display an explicit indication that the playbackdevice 200 is operating in the continuous-playback mode, perhaps inplayback control region 710 or one of the other regions.

In some implementations, the playback device 200 may only play back aportion of a playback queue according to the continuous-playback mode.In particular, the playback device 200 may only play back thecontinuous-playback item according to the continuous-playback mode andany other items in the playback queue may be played back according tonormal play back. In other implementations, adding thecontinuous-playback item to a playback queue may cause any other itemsin the playback queue to be played according to the continuous-playbackmode, while the continuous-playback item is played back according tonormal play back.

After the playback device 200 beings playing back the playback queueaccording to the continuous-playback mode, the playback device 200 mayeventually cease playing back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode. That is, the playback device 200 may exit thecontinuous-playback mode.

In practice, the playback device 200 may cease playing back the playbackqueue according to the continuous-playback mode based on detecting anexit-mode trigger. In one example, the playback device 200 detecting theexit-mode trigger may involve receiving a stop message. In such anexample, the control device 300 may detect an input indicating aninstruction to exit the continuous-playback mode. The control device 300may then transmit to the playback device 200 the stop message indicatinga command for the playback device 200 to cease playing back the playbackqueue. Similarly, the playback device 200 detecting the exit-modetrigger may involve receiving a replace-queue message indicating thatdifferent media content should replace the currently playingcontinuous-playback mode.

In another example, the exit-mode trigger may take the form of on anamount of time, or perhaps a number of played items, while in thecontinuous-playback mode. In particular, the playback device 200detecting such an exit-mode trigger may involve the playback device 200monitoring a duration of time during which the playback device 200 playsback the playback queue according to the continuous-playback mode (orperhaps a number of items played while in the continuous-playback mode).Moreover, this operation may involve the playback device 200 determiningthat the duration of time (or number of items) exceeds a predeterminedthreshold duration of time (or threshold number of items).

In another example, the exit-mode trigger may take the form of apredetermined threshold size of the playback queue and/or thecontinuous-playback queue. In some examples, the predetermined thresholdsize may include a predetermined number of items or a predeterminedamount of storage space. In any event, detecting the exit-mode triggermay involve the playback device 200 monitoring the size of the playbackqueue and determining that the size exceeds the predetermined thresholdsize. Similarly, in other examples, detecting the exit-mode trigger mayinvolve the playback device 200 determining that the number of itemsadded to the playback queue (or specifically, to the continuous-playbackqueue) exceeds a predetermined threshold number. In the above examplesthat involve thresholds, such thresholds may have been set by theplayback device 200, a user of the playback device 200, or the sourceassociated with the continuous-playback item, among other examples.

Based on the playback device 200 detecting the exit-mode trigger, theplayback device 200 may cease playing back the playback queue accordingto the continuous-playback mode. In examples, after exiting thecontinuous-playback mode, the playback device 200 may play back theremaining items in the playback queue that have not been played.

As noted above, a media source may provide the playback device 200additional media items while the playback device 200 is playing back theplayback queue according to the continuous-playback mode. FIG. 8 showsan example flowchart of a method 800 that may be performed by a mediasource server (or simply “media source”). The method 800 may beimplemented within a cloud network that includes a media playback systemcommunicatively coupled to a media source server via the cloud network.In particular, the method 800 may be performed in whole or in part by amedia source server. The method 800 may include one or more operationsor actions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 802-806.

At block 802, the method 800 involves the media source receiving anindication that a playback device is in a continuous-playback mode. Inpractice, the media source may receive the indication from a playbackdevice (e.g., the playback device 200) or a control device (e.g., theplayback device 300) that is communicatively coupled to the mediasource, among other devices. The indication may be particular to and/oridentify a given playback device (e.g., the playback device 200) orperhaps a particular media playback system. The received indication maytake various forms.

In one example, the indication may be included in a request foradditional media items. For instance, in line with the above discussion,the playback device 200 may send to the media source a request foradditional media items (e.g., an API call). The request may include anindicator indicating that the playback device 200 is operating in acontinuous-playback mode. In other examples, the indication may beindependent from any request for additional media items. For instance,after entering the continuous-playback mode, the playback device 200 maytransmit to the media source a mode-indication message that includes theindication. The indication may take other forms as well.

At block 804, the method 800 involves the media source identifying oneor more items to add to a playback queue of the playback device. Inpractice, in some cases, the media source may perform this operationbased on receiving the indication and a request to add additional mediaitems. For example, based on receiving the indication, the media sourcemay enter a mode during which the media source awaits a request foradditional media items. After receiving such a request, the media sourcemay then identify the one or more items to add to the playback queue. Inother cases, the media source may automatically perform this operationbased on receiving the indication. For example, based on receiving theindication, the media source may enter a mode during which the mediasource automatically identifies a predetermined number of items to addto the playback queue. The media source may do so based on apredetermined time interval, such as every 20, 30, or 60 minutes ofplayback by the playback device 200 while in the continuous-playbackmode. Other examples are also possible.

Moreover, the media source identifying the one or more items to add tothe playback queue of the playback device 200 may involve the mediasource determining the items already in the playback queue (e.g., bothitems that have and have not yet been played). In some examples, thisoperation may involve the media source maintaining a profile for theplayback device 200 that includes respective indicators for each of theitems in the playback queue. In other examples, the received request toobtain the additional media items may include information (e.g., in theform of metadata, item identifiers, or a playback queue identifier,among other examples) regarding the items already in the playback queue.In any event, based on the items already in the playback queue, themedia source may be configured to intelligently identify items that arenot yet in the playback queue. In this way, the playback device 200 mayfacilitate the media source providing new items for play back that aredifferent from those items already in the playback queue.

In other cases, the media source identifying the one or more items toadd to the playback queue may involve the media source performing one ormore item-selection algorithms that may be unique to the given mediasource. Such algorithms may allow the media source to identify itemsthat suit the preferences of a user of the playback device 200. In yetother cases, the media source identifying the one or more items to addto the playback queue may involve the media source randomly selectingone or more items from a media source library. Other examples are alsopossible.

At block 806, the method 800 involves the media source transmitting oneor more items. For example, the media source may transmit the one ormore items to the playback device 200 via the cloud network. In someexamples, transmitting the one or more items may involve the mediasource transmitting respective identifiers of the one or more items orperhaps the one or more items themselves. One of ordinary skill in theart will appreciate that the media source may perform other operationsto facilitate the continuous-playback mode and that the above discussionshould not be construed as limiting.

While some examples described herein may refer to operations performedby given actors, such as “users” and/or other entities, it should beunderstood that this is for purposes of explanation only. The claimsshould not be interpreted to require action by any such actors unlessexplicitly required by the language of the claims themselves.

V. Conclusion

The description above discloses, among other things, various examplesystems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture including,among other components, firmware and/or software executed on hardware.It is understood that such examples are merely illustrative and shouldnot be considered as limiting. For example, it is contemplated that anyor all of the firmware, hardware, and/or software aspects or componentscan be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software,exclusively in firmware, or in any combination of hardware, software,and/or firmware. Accordingly, the examples provided are not the onlyway(s) to implement such systems, methods, apparatus, and/or articles ofmanufacture.

As indicated above, examples described herein involve a media playbacksystem playing back a playback queue according to a continuous-playbackmode. In one aspect, a media playback device is provided. The mediaplayback device comprises a network interface configured tocommunicatively couple the media playback device to one or morenetworks, one or more media processing components, a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium, and program instructions stored on thenon-transitory computer-readable medium. The program instructions areexecutable by at least one processor to cause the media playback deviceto: add one or more items to a playback queue of the media playbackdevice, wherein the one or more items comprise a continuous-playbackitem comprising at least one media item, and based on one or morecharacteristics of the continuous-playback item, play back the playbackqueue according to a continuous-playback mode, wherein playing back theplayback queue according to the continuous-playback mode comprises:detecting a continuous-playback trigger, and based on the detectedcontinuous-playback trigger, adding at least one additional media itemto the continuous-playback item.

In another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon that are executable by a playback device ofa media playback system to cause the playback device to: add one or moreitems to a playback queue of the media playback device, wherein the oneor more items comprise a continuous-playback item comprising at leastone media item, and based on one or more characteristics of thecontinuous-playback item, play back the playback queue according to acontinuous-playback mode, wherein playing back the playback queueaccording to the continuous-playback mode comprises: detecting acontinuous-playback trigger, and based on the detectedcontinuous-playback trigger, adding at least one additional media itemto the continuous-playback item.

In yet another aspect, a method is provided. The method involves: (i)adding, by a playback device of a media playback system, one or moreitems to a playback queue of the media playback device, wherein the oneor more items comprise a continuous-playback item comprising at leastone media item, (ii) based on one or more characteristics of thecontinuous-playback item, playing back, by the playback device, theplayback queue according to a continuous-playback mode, (iii) whileplaying back the playback queue according to the continuous-playbackmode, detecting, by the playback device, a continuous-playback trigger,and (iv) based on the detected continuous-playback trigger, adding, bythe playback device, at least one additional media item to thecontinuous-playback item.

Additionally, references herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of aninvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible,non-transitory medium such as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on,storing the software and/or firmware.

1. A media playback device comprising: a network interface configured tocommunicatively couple the media playback device to one or morenetworks; one or more speakers; an audio stage comprising an audioprocessor and one or more amplifiers; one or more processors; a housingcarrying the network interface, the one or more speakers, the audiostage, and the one or more processors; and data storage having aplayback queue stored thereon; and program instructions stored on thedata storage that are executable by the one or more processors to causethe media playback device to perform a method comprising: receiving, viathe network interface from a control device configured to controlplayback by the media playback device, an instruction to add a containeritem to a playback queue of a media playback device, wherein theplayback queue is stored in data storage of the media playback device;in response to the received instruction, adding a container item to theplayback queue of the media playback device, wherein after adding thecontainer item to the playback queue, the playback queue comprises afirst audio track and the container item arranged in a particular orderwithin the playback queue, the first audio track being distinct from oneor more second audio tracks within the container item; based on one ormore characteristics of the container item indicating that the containeritem corresponds to a continuous-playback mode, playing back theplayback queue according to the continuous-playback mode via the one ormore speakers and the audio stage, wherein playing back the playbackqueue according to the continuous-playback mode comprises playing backthe one or more second audio tracks within the container item accordingto the continuous-playback mode; while playing back the playback queueaccording to the continuous-playback mode via the one or more speakersand the audio stage, repeatedly detecting a continuous-playback trigger,wherein detecting the continuous-playback trigger comprises determiningthat a number of unplayed second audio tracks within the container itemis less than a predetermined threshold number of audio tracks, andwherein detecting the continuous-playback trigger is independent of userinput; and in response to detecting each continuous-playback trigger:(i) transmitting, via the network interface to one or more servers ofthe particular streaming media service, a request for one or moreadditional audio tracks that correspond to the one or more second audiotracks in the playback queue; (ii) receiving, via the network interfacefrom the one or more servers in response to the transmitted request, oneor more uniform resource identifiers representing sources of one or moreadditional audio tracks; and (iii) adding the one or more additionalaudio tracks to the container item.
 2. The media playback device ofclaim 1, wherein adding the container item to the playback queue of themedia playback device comprises adding a first predetermined number ofaudio tracks comprising the one or more second audio tracks, and whereinadding the one or more additional audio tracks to the container itemcomprises adding a second predetermined number of audio tracks.
 3. Themedia playback device of claim 2, wherein the first predetermined numberof audio tracks is equivalent to the second predetermined number ofaudio tracks.
 4. The media playback device of claim 1, wherein the oneor more characteristics of the container item comprise an indication ofthe particular streaming media service, and wherein the method furthercomprises: before playing back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode, determining that the particular streamingmedia service of the one or more second audio tracks within thecontainer item is a continuous-playback media source.
 5. The mediaplayback device of claim 1, wherein the one or more characteristics ofthe container item comprise a playback indicator corresponding to aninstruction for the media playback device to play back the one or moresecond audio tracks within the container item according to thecontinuous-playback mode.
 6. The media playback device of claim 1,wherein the playback queue is limited to a predetermined threshold queuesize, and wherein playing back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode further comprises: determining that adding theone or more additional audio tracks to the container item would cause aqueue size of the playback queue to exceed the predetermined thresholdqueue size for the playback queue; and based on determining that addingthe one or more additional audio tracks to the container item wouldcause the queue size of the playback queue to exceed the predeterminedthreshold queue size for the playback queue, removing one or more audiotracks from the container item within the playback queue.
 7. The mediaplayback device of claim 6, wherein the queue size corresponds to one of(i) a number of audio tracks within the playback queue or (ii) a storagemeasurement indicating an amount of storage space occupied by theplayback queue.
 8. The media playback device of claim 6, whereinremoving the one or more audio tracks from the playback queue comprisesremoving at least one of the one or more second audio tracks within thecontainer item.
 9. The media playback device of claim 6, wherein theplayback queue comprises timestamps corresponding to respective playbacktimes of played audio tracks within the playback queue, and wherein theremoved one or more audio tracks correspond to one or more played audiotracks with corresponding timestamps that indicate an earlier time thantimestamps corresponding to other played audio tracks within theplayback queue.
 10. The media playback device of claim 1, wherein thefirst audio track within the playback queue corresponds to a first mediasource, and wherein the one or more second audio tracks within thecontainer item correspond to a second media source that is differentfrom the first media source.
 11. The media playback device of claim 1,wherein the method further comprises: after adding the one or moreadditional audio tracks to the container item, transmitting, via thenetwork interface to the control device, playback-queue-state dataindicating that the one or more additional audio tracks has been addedto the container item to cause the control device to update a displayedcontroller interface with a graphical indication of the playback queuewith the one or more additional audio tracks.
 12. The media playbackdevice of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: receiving, viathe network interface from the control device, aplayback-queue-modification command to remove the container item;modifying the playback queue in response to receiving theplayback-queue-modification command; and transmitting, via the networkinterface to the control device, playback-queue-state data indicatingthat the playback queue has been modified to cause the control device toupdate a displayed controller interface with a graphical indication ofthe playback queue without the container item.
 13. The media playbackdevice of claim 12, wherein the one or more second audio tracks withinthe container item comprises multiple audio tracks, wherein modifyingthe playback queue comprises modifying an order of the multiple audiotracks within the container item.
 14. The media playback device of claim12, wherein transmitting the playback-queue-state data indicating thatthe playback queue has been modified comprises transmitting dataindicating a modification location, wherein the modification locationcorresponds to one or more positions within the playback queue that hasbeen modified.
 15. The media playback device of claim 12, wherein theone or more second audio tracks within the container item correspond toa first media source, and wherein modifying the playback queue comprisesadding an external audio track to the container item, wherein theexternal audio track comprises an audio track corresponding to a secondmedia source that is different from the first media source, and whereintransmitting the playback-queue-state data indicating that the playbackqueue has been modified comprises transmitting metadata of the externalaudio track, wherein the metadata of the external audio track indicatesat least one of (i) a title, (ii) an artist name, (iii) an album name,or (iv) a duration of time corresponding to the audio track.
 16. Themedia playback device of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:receiving, via a network interface from a control device, aplayback-queue-modification command to remove the container item; andremoving the container item from the playback queue in response toreceiving the playback-queue-modification command to remove thecontainer item, wherein removing the container item from the playbackqueue comprises removing the one or more second audio tracks and the oneor more additional audio tracks.
 17. The media playback device of claim1, wherein the method further comprises: while playing back the playbackqueue according to the continuous-playback mode, causing a graphicaldisplay to display an indication that the media playback device isoperating in the continuous-playback mode.
 18. The media playback deviceof claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: monitoring a durationof time while playing back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode; and in response to determining that theduration of time exceeds a predetermined threshold duration of time,ceasing to play back the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode.
 19. Tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media having instructions stored thereon that areexecutable by one or more processors of a media playback device of amedia playback system to cause the media playback device to perform amethod comprising: receiving, via a network interface of the mediaplayback device from a control device configured to control playback bythe media playback device, an instruction to add a container itemcorresponding to a particular streaming media service to a playbackqueue of a media playback device, wherein the playback queue is storedin data storage of the media playback device; in response to thereceived instruction, adding a container item to a playback queue of themedia playback device, and wherein after adding the container item tothe playback queue, the playback queue comprises a first audio track andthe container item arranged in a particular order within the playbackqueue, the first audio track being distinct from one or more secondaudio tracks within the container item; based on one or morecharacteristics of the container item indicating that the container itemcorresponds to a continuous-playback mode, playing back the playbackqueue according to the continuous-playback mode via one or more speakersand one or more amplifiers of the media playback device, wherein playingback the playback queue according to the continuous-playback modecomprises: playing back the one or more second audio tracks within thecontainer item according to the continuous-playback mode; while playingback the playback queue according to the continuous-playback mode viathe one or more speakers and the one or more amplifiers of the mediaplayback device, repeatedly detecting a continuous-playback trigger,wherein detecting the continuous-playback trigger comprises determiningthat a number of unplayed second audio tracks within the container itemis less than a predetermined threshold number of audio tracks, andwherein detecting the continuous-playback trigger is independent of userinput; and in response to detecting each continuous-playback trigger:(i) transmitting, via the network interface to one or more servers ofthe particular streaming media service, a request for one or moreadditional audio tracks that correspond to the one or more second audiotracks in the playback queue; (ii) receiving, via the network interfacefrom the one or more servers in response to the transmitted request, oneor more uniform resource identifiers representing sources of one or moreadditional audio tracks; and (iii) adding the one or more additionalaudio tracks to the container item.
 20. A method comprising: a mediaplayback device of a media playback system receiving, via a networkinterface of a media playback device from a control device configured tocontrol playback by the media playback device, an instruction to add acontainer item to a playback queue of a media playback device, whereinthe playback queue is stored in data storage of the media playbackdevice; in response to the received instruction, the media playbackdevice adding, via the media playback device of a media playback system,a container item to a playback queue of the media playback device, andwherein after adding the container item to the playback queue, theplayback queue comprises a first audio track and the container itemarranged in a particular order within the playback queue, the firstaudio track being distinct from one or more second audio tracks withinthe container item; based on one or more characteristics of thecontainer item indicating that the container item corresponds to acontinuous-playback mode, the media playback device playing back, viathe media playback device, the playback queue according to thecontinuous-playback mode via one or more speakers, wherein playing backthe playback queue according to the continuous-playback mode comprisesplaying back the one or more second audio tracks within the containeritem according to the continuous-playback mode via the one or morespeakers and one or more amplifiers of the media playback device;; whileplaying back the playback queue according to the continuous-playbackmode via the one or more speakers and the one or more amplifiers of themedia playback device, the media playback device repeatedly detecting,via the media playback device, a continuous-playback trigger, whereindetecting the continuous-playback trigger comprises determining that anumber of unplayed second audio tracks within the container item is lessthan a predetermined threshold number of audio tracks, and whereindetecting the continuous-playback trigger is independent of user input;and in response to detecting each continuous-playback trigger: (i) themedia playback device transmitting, via the network interface to one ormore servers of the particular streaming media service, a request forone or more additional audio tracks that correspond to the one or moresecond audio tracks in the playback queue; (ii) the media playbackdevice receiving, via the network interface from the one or more serversin response to the transmitted request, one or more uniform resourceidentifiers representing sources of one or more additional audio tracks;and (iii) the media playback device adding the one or more additionalaudio tracks to the container item.